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Long ago I was just a bad PHP developer. I hated JavaScript and used simple HTML and CSS which I didn't liked either. I also had 0 designer skills and couldn't make a simple images with transparent background myself, I hated that job too. (That time to make a rounded or more exclusive box corners you needed to make images for that). I also liked to work from my own PC and not from office. I disliked many other frameworks.

"Growth begins at the end of your comfort zone"

— The Illusion of Comfort, Thomas Oppong, Medium - The Mission

10 years later. Everything changed, backend engineer without JS knowledge today is not a backend developer and UI engineer who can't make/edit views/templates himself is not a UI engineer.

• Now I am doing mostly frontend stuff because it is very hard to find a good UI/UX engineer, since frontend became so complicated, large, important and just hype;
• I use custom HTML tags, custom CSS architecture and contributing to Web Standards
• JavaScript became my favorite language, however, it still sucks in many ways;
• I can do cool stuff in GIMP and Inkscape sometimes better then designers with experience in their expensive PhotoShops, Illustrators and everything else;
• I am working on my Windows laptop or MacBook sitting in cafes, libraries, co-working spaces, offices, parks.
• I've been using so many frameworks and libraries I don't even remember. Hello Zend, Typo3, IRC, PHP forums and BB tags.
• I am doing Tai Chi sometimes in the central parks in Riga and random people are always feeling surprised.
• I am offering meetings not in office/cafe but just walking. Many people are so afraid from that crazy guy and not accept this. They all are still in their comfort zone.

I had to jump outside of my comfort zone so much because business needed it and because I wanted always more. And yes, my butt crashed and burned many times at the beginning. My experience was crazy and I feel awesome because I "grew" into a Swiss army knife full-stack software architect-designer-manager. Not mentioning startup, business and legal skills.

"An entrepreneur is someone who jumps from a plane without a parachute, and figures out how to build one on the way down."

— Matt Salzberg, Founder & CEO at Blue Apron

We all fear from unknown. Just do everyday something new, don't care about others, do whatever you want. You made first step and your lazy ass wants to stop again, just say "f--k this, let see what will happen" and keep going.